Fractals
by faeriegirl12
Summary: She hates him. He loves her. They both change in their last year when a handful of romance, a cup of danger, and a pinch of a prank battle are added to their lives. James x Lily. T for swearing.
1. Prologue

**To Write in Love & War**

**So I don't know how you guys feel about a little Lily x James fanfic. . . But here's one anyways! I know, I bet you are all going, "Okay, so she can write a new fanfiction. . . But not update Clockwork Academy, COTF, Dark Clarity, or Clockwork Enigma?!" Actually yes. I'm having writer's block with the two Clockworks and just about everything else. . . humiliatingly enough. I swear, updates are coming soon! In the meantime. . . **

**Summary: Lily Evans has hated James Potter and most of his friends, the mischievous Marauders from the moment they met each other. James, on the other hand, has forever been completely obsessed with Lily. Their love-hate relationship seems to have no change until seventh year, when James seems to have changed. But Lily won't fall for him. . . right? But most everyone at Hogwarts seems to have forgotten about one dangerous, lethal thing: Voldemort and his followers are rising– even within the formerly safe walls of Hogwarts itself. Love, betrayal, and war. **

**Prologue**

* * *

_Lily Evans was beyond thrilled when she found out she was a witch, and not a Muggle. She was ecstatic— to be going to a magic school called Hogwarts and not the Muggle school that she had always found dull and daft. The children there relentlessly teased her about the fact that she was "odd" and Lily hated it. She absolutely hated it. _But, _Lily told herself, _that's all water under the bridge now. You're going to Hogwarts, with your best friend, Severus.

_And Lily didn't think she'd ever been more excited and overjoyed. She waved to her mother, father, and her sister, Petunia. Petunia pretended she was tying her shoes, and Lily abruptly withdrew from the Hogwarts Express window, feeling a pang in her stomach and turned back to Severus. Severus was looking rather wistfully out the window, but hid it as he faced Lily, grinning. _

_"Oi!" a brute shout came from the corridor. "Prat! Give me that, Prongs!" _

_Lily and Severus stared at each other. What kind of name was "Prongs"? The shouting continued, eventually lapsing into a bout of laughter. _

_"That hurt," complained someone. From the voice, it sounded like a boy. "Try not to wheel my insides out next time, all right? Go and punch Moony or Wormtail or something, Padfoot." _

_Lily felt bemused. Wormtail? Padfoot? Moony? Surely they had to be nicknames; no parent would be nearly that cruel. At last, she poked her head out the door of her and Sev's compartment as the voices came closer. _

_It was a pack of four boys heading down the corridor. The first one had a swagger in his step and dark hair falling over his sharply defined face, like he knew just how good-looking he already was. The boy next to him had black hair and glasses. Something about his smile seemed mischievous and conceited. The boy absently walking behind them had his face in a book, so Lily couldn't see him terribly well. And the fourth boy was small and short, hurriedly leaping alongside the third boy's side like he was afraid he'd be left behind. Lily swallowed a giggle. _

_"Sev, do you know those boys?" Lily wondered out of curiosity. She doubted Sev did, but then again, he seemed to know everyone in one way or another. _

_Severus stuck his head out alongside hers and stiffened. "Yes, actually, I do know them." _

_"Really? How?" Lily watched the four boys with interest. _

_Severus sounded like he was speaking through his teeth; not wanting to let an insult slip past his mouth. "Those two in the front are Potter and Black." The names were said innocently and blankly enough, but Lily sensed Severus's disgust for them. "And behind them are Lupin and Pettigrew." _

_"Oh." Lily knew she should probably sit back in her seat and shut the compartment door before Potter, Black, Lupin, and Pettigrew came closer to her and Severus's compartment, but it felt like her feet were glued to where she was standing. She just couldn't seem to move. The four boys came closer, Potter and Black still laughing. They hadn't seen her and Sev yet. _

_"Lily, come on," Severus muttered sharply, jerking back from the door as if he'd been burned. "Let's just—" _

_"Hey!" a yell cut Severus off, and Lily's head shot up. The four boys were about four feet away. Potter was staring at her, Black's eyes were fixed on Severus, Pettigrew was looking at Potter and Black for guidance, and Lupin had ran into the window while reading his book. "Prongs, look, it's _Snivellus!"

_Potter's gaze darted to Severus. So he was Prongs. A lazy grin stretched its way across Potter's face. Black's slightly malicious smile was all over his features. "Well, if it isn't little Snivelly. Finally got the brains to go to Hogwarts, eh? And who's she? Your girlfriend?" _

_Lily felt herself go a million shades of red all at once. _

_Severus glared fiercely at them. "Shut up, Potter." _

_Black snarled out a laugh that sounded more like a growl. Potter still had the lazy grin splashed on his face. "I don't think I will, Snape. What's your girlfriend's name?" _

_"I'm not his girlfriend," Lily snapped. She felt herself ignite with anger. God, she hated Potter and his little friends. They were so annoying and obnoxious, and what had Sev ever done to them? Nothing. So why were they treating him so meanly?_

_"She speaks!" Black announced mockingly after a minute of silence. "So what's your name again? I didn't quite catch it over Snivelly's breathing." _

_"Lily, really," Severus said lowly, "let's just. . ." _

_Potter interrupted him, flashing a blinding smile full of arrogance at Lily. She was dying for the chance to slap it right off his face. "Go out with me?"_

_Lily reached up and slammed the compartment door so hard she felt the vibrations under her fingertips. Black and Potter waltzed off, laughing like hyenas. Lupin followed more slowly, rubbing his head sheepishly and mouthing "Sorry" at Lily and Severus through the glass. Pettigrew scurried after the two ringleaders, and Lily fell back into her seat, breathing like she'd just run a marathon. _

_"Sev?" _

_"Hmmm?" Severus still sounded furious. _

_"I _hate _him." _

* * *

_Lily nervously walked up to what Professor McGonagall had called the Sorting Hat. She could feel hundreds of pairs of eyes on her as her knees knocked together. She felt her face go red again as she scanned the crowd of students. In the Slytherin table, a girl with long, dark hair and heavily lidded eyes whispered something to a boy with cold features. The Gryffindor table looked cheerful, its new recipients smiling at Lily. The Hufflepuff table was quiet, and the Ravenclaw table looked studious and solemn. Which house did she belong in? _

_Lily sat on the stool and the professor lifted the Hat and put in on her head. Lily nearly fell off the stool when she heard the small voice in her ear as it said, "Hmmmm. Loyalty. And. . ." the Hat chuckled slightly and Lily flinched. "A fair bit of power too. Lots of bravery. You belong in. . . GRYFFINDOR!" _

_The Hat was whisked off Lily's head as the sound of applause assaulted her eardrums, and she smiled shakily as she walked over to the Gryffindor table. Someone slapped her on the back as cheering erupted. Lily could see Black smirking slightly at her, and sent a scowl back. _

_That night, Lily watched as Potter, Lupin, and Pettigrew were all Sorted into Gryffindor, while Severus landed in Slytherin. _

Oh no. . .

* * *

**So there goes the prologue. Opinions? Thoughts? **


	2. Chapter 1: Despising Deer

**DISCLAIMER: Does I seem like I'm JK Rowling? **

**So this fanfic basically continues on from a few weeks right after the start of sixth year. (So the incident with Snape being hoisted up a tree by James has not happened yet.) **

**Chapter One: Despising Deer**

* * *

Oh, I just _hate _James Potter.

I hated everything about him— the way he was always ruffling his black hair to make it look windswept, the way he was always messing around with his stolen Snitch. I hated the way he pranked and humiliated others when they did nothing to him. And I _especially_ hated the way he would never shut up for a minute in his bigoted life.

I fumed about it to myself for a while. "Hate" wasn't even the correct word. "Loathe" or "despise" were far, far better in describing my absolute disgust towards him. In case you don't know the holier-than-thou _Potter, _his head is so big I don't know how he's able to keep himself on his fancy broom. His arrogance is a mile wide, and he manages to seduce half the girls at Hogwarts in twenty-four hours with his so-called "charm." Doubtful. His "charm" consists of supposedly heart-melting pickup lines that cause your brain to drip out of your ears, horrible pranks he pulls with his friends, and revolting sexual innuendoes that make me want to forcefully vomit all over his freshly shined shoes instead of _kneeling_ at them like the King of Conceit expects. As if.

In general, the main thing you need to know is that he disgusts me. The worst part isn't his charm, or his idiocy: it's the fact that he cannot take a single hint. Potter has been asking me out since first year for no other reason than that he thinks I'm pretty. How shallow can you possibly _get? _And have I said yes yet? Not even close. But still. . .

_At breakfast yesterday_: "Go out with me, Evans?"

_In Transfiguration yesterday_: A note that hit me square in the face. It said, "Will you go out with me?"

_In the library yesterday_: "Evans, I'll get that book for you if you'll go out with me."

_EVERYWHERE YESTERDAY_: "Evans, will you go out with me?"

No, James Potter. No, no, no, no, no. But that prat won't take no for an answer. Ever. Nor will he take the consideration of others into his bigheaded mind and _shut his mouth_. We're in the latter half of our sixth year, and Potter and his little band of comrades are still prancing around the school and playing pranks right under the Prefects' noses. Well, every Prefect except for me. Remus Lupin, the sensible one in the Marauders, is a Prefect, but does he every control his idiotic mates? No. So the job is left to me, and I swear, it's getting ridiculous.

I furiously stalked down the corridor, my feet clanging rigorously on the floor. Then I realized I was a Prefect, and therefore had to set perfect examples for all the younger students. I straightened up, quit stomping my heart out, and tried to regain an air of dignity, flipping my red hair over one shoulder and tightening my grip on the strap of my bookbag.

"Hey! Evans!"

Oh, no. Get the hell away from me, Potter. . .

I didn't stop to wait for him, spitting out, "What do you want, Potter?"

I threw a quick glance behind me, and sure enough, James Bloody Potter was shoving his way through students without any regard to see if he pushed them over or not. _Prat. _In his wake was the ever-present and equally obnoxious Sirius Black, trailing behind Potter like a sulky shadow.

I didn't really know what to think of Sirius. He was just as outrightly malicious as Potter and was half the mastermind behind every prank there ever was. Black was one of the lady killers of Hogwarts, aka the most eligible bachelor there ever was, with a new girl on his arm and a broken heart under his heel every Friday. He'd never seemed to like me much, and honestly, the feeling was mutual. I didn't loathe him, but it's not like we're all cheek-and-jowl. So, not mates by any sense of the world.

"Can we talk, Evans?" And just like that, Potter was walking in sync with me again. _Noooo. . . ._

"What does it look like, Potter?" I snapped. "I'm obviously busy at the moment, and I'm going to be late to Charms. Bugger off."

"Then let me walk you there," Potter insisted persistently. "C'mon, Evans." A sly smirk played about his mouth, and I wanted to smack it off for him like a pesky mosquito.

"You aren't giving me much of a choice," I remarked acidly, walking a bit faster. If only I wasn't so short. . .

"You know me so well," Potter said arrogantly. I looked at— or rather, _up_— at him, and he was ruffling his hair. My teeth ground together.

"No, I just know you're an arsehole," I got out through my clenched jaw, stating it like it was a fact. The sky was blue, I was a witch, and James Potter was an arsehole. End of story.

There was a small snicker from Black, and I whipped around the scowl fiercely at him.

"You can't dislike me that much, eh Evans?" If I hadn't known better, I would've said Potter sounded almost pleading. Ha. But that would be saying that Professor McGonagall was doing pirouettes in plaid knickers and yodeling a song of the Scottish highlands with a fiddle while simultaneously waltzing with Peeves on the seventh-floor corridor, which is to say, _impossible. _

"I mean," Potter continued as we went up a staircase, "what's not to love? I'm handsome, talented—"

"_Deer_," interjected Black with a smirk that spoke legions of an inside joke. I couldn't decide whether he'd said "deer" as in the animal or "dear" as in the salutation for a letter. Either way, it made no sense. "Watch out Evans, he might just _impale _you with a gigantic antler one day when he gets all riled up, if you know what I mean."

Knowing Black, that whole statement was one big, elaborate sexual innuendo. I felt my face going up in flames like Black had just doused me in gasoline. Oh, god.

"Shut the hell up, Black," I hissed as sourly as I could manage with my face as red as my hair. Just a normal day in the mortifying life of Lily Evans.

Potter paused his monologue of "Look-At-Me-I'm-A-Jerk" to toss a dirty look at Black, who barked out a mingled stream of swear words and laughter. _Boys._

"Anyways, where were we?" Potter sounded like he was waiting for me to gush on about him like his past girlfriends or something, like all, "Oh _James!"_ *swoon* "You're right! You _are_ handsome, and so clever, and I love you, and _eeeee!_"

Really, what did the jerk make me for, a pliable and naive little girl? I was Lily Evans, and hell, Lily Evans despised James Potter. Even the lowliest first-year knew that. I mean, did he actually believe I was going to go fainting at his stupid feet?

Not a chance, Potter.

"Nowhere," I mumbled derisively. Black barked out another laugh. Why did he keep sounding like a. . . _dog? _Whatever. Probably just me over-analyzing everything because bloody Potter was in the vicinity. "Look, Potter, why don't you just f—"

"Language, Evans," Black spouted, pretending to brush a bit of lint from his clothes. Okay, I'd made up my mind: I definitely hated him too. The self-obsessed, idiotic little. . .

I ignored him. Who knows, maybe there were some first-years watching this soap opera unfold or something. . . "Well, Potter, I'm at Charms. Later. . . but hopefully not," I added under my breath.

Potter looked slightly dejected, and moved to block the Charms doorway. Now I was _really _going to be late. . . He opened his mouth to whine something, and I considered quoting Severus on how "life isn't fair" and all that jazz before I decided against it. Potter and Black would probably hunt down poor Severus then. So, being the hypocritical person I am, I shoved my way past Potter and Black with a hefty glare speared at each of them.

_Good riddance. _

"Who were you glaring at?" asked one of my friends, Marlene McKinnon. Beside her sat my other best friend, Autumn Killick. Marlene and Autumn were complete opposites— Marlene had hair that managed to be every shade in the blonde spectrum without dying it at all. Her eyes were a brilliant dark blue color, and she was tall and slender, almost like a bird. Marlene, however, was the bravest person I'd ever met.

Autumn, on the other hand, was petite, with very, very long dark brown hair. Her amber eyes were always glittering with some kind of mischief, and she was the daredevil of all of us— the one that would sneak into the boys' dormitories and cast itching hexes on them or fly the highest on her broom, locked in a competition with Sirius Black. Autumn and Black were two of the singlehandedly most competitive people I'd ever met in my entire life, and they were forever trying to outdo the other.

Marlene and Autumn were both on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. And I swear, they could never take no for an answer. . . No matter how many times I tried to convince them that flying made me nauseous, it was always "Lily, come fly with us" this and "Lily, come to Quidditch practice!" that. Sorry, but no. After my experience in second year where Autumn dragged me up on her broom and I vomited, I was done with anything that had the least bit to do with flying.

"Lily?" Autumn was waving a hand in front of my face. She shot a look at Marlene. Okay, so I was a little mad. . . But could you blame me? NEWTS were coming, and I was going to die.

"What? What's happening?" I jerked upwards, my head flipping from left to right like a card. "Merlin, did Professor Flitwick call on me? Am I in trouble? What's—"

"Lily," Autumn said reassuringly, "no one's calling on you. You're fine. Mar just asked you who you were glaring at. Wait no, I bet I can guess that. . ."

I groaned. Stupid Potter. Stupid, stupid Potter. "It was the prat, Potter. He's being a real tosser these days. . ."

Marlene sighed, and Autumn rolled her eyes. "Lily, maybe if you just told him yes for once. . ."

"Ridiculous," I snapped. "Potter is just screwing with me. We all know that. I'm not pretty, not really interesting. I'm a Prefect. He's popular. We're completely incompatible, basically. Add in the fact that I absolutely _loathe _and you've got the dream couple of the year in the making."

"I'm being serious," Marlene protested, and I scowled at her, ready with a nice retort until Flitwick marched in.

I straightened up in my seat, prepared to look like the perfect student, and glanced around the classroom. Under her desk, Autumn had _Quidditch Through the Ages _by Kennilworthy Whisp. She was on the Quidditch team with Marlene, and they were both Chasers and completely obsessed with Quidditch. Meanwhile, I was a rule-abiding prefect, which was sort of boring, but I liked it all the same.

As Professor Flitwick began the lesson, I swatted at Autumn and she jumped. _Quidditch Through the Ages _fell to the floor with a loud crash. Flitwick barely looked up, and Autumn fumbled for her book, shrugging as I shot her a disapproving look. Meanwhile, the two Marauders in Charms— Sirius Black and Potter, naturally— started snickering. I rolled my eyes. _Great. _They were probably planning some other kind of ridiculous prank, knowing them.

The last prank they played on Professor Flitwick involved them "accidentally" levitating him onto the Slytherins' heads, namely _Severus's _head. Charms was a Gryffindor-Slytherin class, just like Defense Against the Dark Arts, and the minute I stepped into those two classes, I knew they'd end in complete disaster.

"Today," Flitwick's squeaky voice went, "we will be practicing dueling. Times grow darker, and Professor Dumbledore has instructed me to educate students on the art of fighting."

I gulped. Art of fighting? In a Slytherin-Gryffindor class? Was he mad? The rivalry between Gryffindors and Slytherins had just gotten worse (thanks to the Marauders, mostly). It was practically a war zone. And Dumbledore and Flitwick were mental enough to try and attempt dueling in a war zone, apparently.

Bloody hell. Flitwick would be in luck if the classroom wasn't completely destroyed by the end of class today.

"Professor Dumbledore has instructed me to assign you all dueling partners for the end of this unit," Flitwick continued. Marlene, Autumn, and I all shot each other a three-way look. Maybe Flitwick would allow a group of three? It was doubtful, but I crossed my fingers under my desk. "The partners are. . ." Flitwick grabbed a long scroll. "Bulstrode and Lestrange. Avery and Snape. Killick and Black."

"Sorry, Autumn," Marlene whispered to Autumn. Autumn wasn't paying attention to her; instead, she was locked in a glaring match with Black.

". . . McKinnon and Vance. Bones and Malfoy."

I shuddered. Lucius Malfoy was a well-known dueler who specialized in cursing others. In my opinion, he was a slimy git. But Amelia Bones was equally skilled, if not better. It seemed like more than half of these pairings were to make sure they murdered each other.

Flitwick flipped the scroll over. "Potter and Evans."

She froze. _Oh. No. He. _Didn't.

_Someone please kill me right now. Flitwick stuck me with James Bloody Potter for this whole damn unit! _

Marlene and Autumn gave me sympathetic glances. I wanted to find a good wall and smash my head against it.

"Right, everyone." Flitwick rolled up his scroll with a slapping sound as he finished off the last of the partners. "Find your partners, please."

I looked desperately around the room. Could I pretend to be sick? I mean, cramps could get you out of anything. . . couldn't they? If I looked ill enough, Flitwick would have to send me to the hospital wing.

"Hey, Evans!" Potter was somehow standing a few feet away from my desk, where I was currently in shock. "Evans?"

I put on my best "I'm-going-to-vomit" face and scrambled out of my seat. "Don't, Potter," I choked. "I think I might be—"

Potter peered at me over the edges of his glasses, messing up his hair. That one little gesture set me off again— to hell with being sick, I'd like to curse his hair off!

"All right, Evans?"

I debated. Maybe it would be a good idea to stay. . . If I was lucky, I could even get a few hexes in. If I ignored his obnoxious comments, then I'd live.

I dropped my vomiting façade and smiled angelically up at him. "All right, Potter?"

Potter looked taken aback by my change in demeanor. He grinned, dug his hand into his pocket, and began playing with his nicked Snitch again. My teeth ground together. _Calm down, Lily, you'll get your chance soon enough. _

"The first thing that you'll be doing with your partners is engaging in a mock duel so I can assess your skill level," squeaked Flitwick. _Damn, he's actually mad. _

A quick look around the room showed me that it looked like the Slytherin-Gryffindor partners were about ready to explode. Autumn and Black were both glowering at each other, and I imagined the jinxes they had planned for one another.

Potter's stupid voice broke me out of my thoughts. "Are we actually dueling each other?"

"What does it look like?" I snapped, already irritated. _This was going to be a bad, bad year. _

"Do you even _want _to?" pressed Potter, his eyes searching for mine. I stared at my feet.

_The obnoxious little git, _I thought. He'd hit a nice chord in me. The truth was, I really _didn't _want to. Because I had a rather unfortunate quiz in Transfiguration (next class, go figure!) that I was in desperate need to study for. But on the other hand: a chance to kick James Potter's arse? Sign me up.

I readied my wand as Flitwick counted down. "Potter, why wouldn't I want to cause you humiliation?"

Something flickered in Potter's eyes, and then he snarled, "Want revenge for your slimy Slytherin sn—"

"—two, _one!" _finished Flitwick. Everyone froze for a second, and then it all exploded.

"_Petrificus Totalus!_" I heard Autumn scream. Black dodged her, barking out a mingled stream of swear words and laughter. It wasn't until she caught him with Densaugeo and his teeth had grown down to his collar that he jerked upwards with a snarl.

Beside me, Amelia Bones and Lucius Malfoy's duel had gone from petty to downright dangerous. A cloud of small yellow birds slammed into the wall above Potter's head and I laughed myself silly as he spit feathers everywhere.

Emmaline Vance was leaping daintily out of Marlene's jinxes, trying to keep her coiffed blonde hair in place while firing spells every which way. Marlene stiffened as a jet of light slammed into her arm and red, angry-looking boils began to sprout everywhere.

The room was full of light and shouts of defeat, rage, and victory. Professor Flitwick was squeaking something inaudible, and over all of this I heard, "Don't worry, Evans, I'll go easy on you!"

_Bloody Potter. How dare he? _This little comment decided my mind. Potter was such a. . . arse! I hated him. "_Flipendo!" _I yelled. Potter was still shouting something about "going easy" as the spell hit him. And fine, I'll admit it, it was satisfying as hell to watch Potter flip backwards.

"I thought you loved me, Evans!" Potter smirked at me as he pushed himself to his feet. On the other side of the room, Autumn had just Disarmed Black. I cheered silently for her.

"What are you, _delusional?"_ I snapped as loudly as I could. "I don't love you, you toerag! You're a big-headed prat who hasn't a lock nor key for his damn ego! _Engorgio!" _I pointed my wand at his head, increasing the intensity of the charm as his head started to swell rapidly.

"_Expelliarmus!" _Potter tried witlessly.

"_Protego!" _The charm ricocheted off my shield speeding towards Potter. In all, the mindless idiot Disarmed himself. I leapt into the air and caught his wand with a triumphant smirk.

"Aw, you got me," Potter pouted over the noisy racket assaulting our ears. His head continued to swell. "Always knew you had it in you, Evans."

My eye caught Sev's over the duelers. I raised Potter's wand. Sev's gaze darted past me until it fastened onto Potter's (now huge) head and we shared a laugh.

"_Sonorus," _Flitwick squeaked. His voice magnified. "STOP!"

All of us froze. Flitwick undid the spell and his voice reverted to normal. "Hospital Wing, now, please. If you have won your duel, House Points will be awarded. Please raise your hand if you have won."

I surveyed the room. Autumn had her hand raised high, her chin set proudly. Black was staring daggers and something else at her as he walked oddly out the door. Malfoy had his hand up; Amelia Bones was passed out in a corner. The two Slytherins, Violette Bulstrode and Rabastian Lestrange were both limping off to the Hospital Wing. Severus, who had been versus Avery, had lost. And curiously enough, Emmaline Vance had won her and Marlene's duel.

"Ten points to Gryffindor. . . Ten to Slytherin. . . Ten to Gryffindor. . ." Flitwick went around the classroom distributing out House Points. I thought of the crimson rubies falling into the Gryffindor hourglass and grinned. "All right, class dismissed!" called Flitwick. "Remember, these are your dueling partners for this whole unit. See you next class!"

* * *

**Okay, I know this WAS NOT the greatest chapter, but I wanted to put something up. . . Thoughts? Yes? No? Sorta? Also, the OC, Autumn Killick, came to be after Soaking In The Reign asked to be an OC. Cool stuff! **

**Read, review, follow, favorite pretty please? :-P Tell me what you think!**


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